Israel & Judah are Two Distinct Nations

Who is the true House of Israel?

Aug 03, 2025

There is a dangerous theology that has permeated both Judaism and Christianity for some time now. Many have mistaken Judah (the Jews) as the whole House of Israel when this is a sorely false belief that is contrary to Scripture. This twisted understanding of Israel has led many to believe the 1948 State of Israel is the fulfillment of numerous prophesies of the Bible, when this is simply not the case. This poor understanding undermines the true prophecy of the regathering of both the House of Israel and the House of Judah when the Messiah comes in the clouds and gathers His elect from the four winds (Matthew 24:30-31). Ezekiel 37 also reveals that the regathering of both Houses of Israel back into Palestine will occur when Christ returns, not before that time. For Israel to return and reclaim Palestine several conditions must be met: 1) Israel will come from all nations from around the world; 2) Israel (aka Joseph) and Judah will become one nation; 3) Israel must no longer defile themselves with their sin and idols; 4) Jesus will be their King forever; and 5) a covenant of peace will be given to them. None of these five conditions have been met at this time.

The crux of the matter is that there are two nations of Israel: the House of Israel (the 10 tribes of the Northern Kingdom, also known as Israel, Ephraim, Joseph, or Samaria) and the House of Judah (Judah and Benjamin, the Southern Kingdom, also known as Judah). Unfortunately, modern-day theologians and rabbis have made the common mistake of believing that Judah comprises all 12 tribes and that all of Israel has returned, and there is no biblical explanation that supports this conclusion. Therefore, to understand who Israel and Judah are, one must first begin in 1 Kings 11:31-35:

31 And he said to Jeroboam, “Take for yourself ten pieces, for thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Behold, I am about to tear the kingdom from the hand of Solomon and will give you ten tribes 32 (but he shall have one tribe, for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city that I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel), 33 because they have forsaken me and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites, and they have not walked in my ways, doing what is right in my sight and keeping my statutes and my rules, as David his father did. 34 Nevertheless, I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, but I will make him ruler all the days of his life, for the sake of David my servant whom I chose, who kept my commandments and my statutes. 35 But I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand and will give it to you, ten tribes.”(1)

Simply put, the 10 Northern tribes (the House of Israel) were given to Jeroboam because of Solomon's sin, while Solomon remained King over Judah and Benjamin (the House of Judah). They are two separate and distinct nations that will become one nation once the Messiah returns. Only at this point, when Christ returns, will the prophecy of both houses return to the land be fulfilled. Consequently, the 1948 State of Israel is a counterfeit distraction of the biblical narrative that is actively imposing an illegal military occupation and an ongoing threat against the region’s stability as a whole, not to mention the Palestinian people.

Getting back to the heart of the matter: who exactly is the House of Israel, and who is the House of Judah in our modern-day context?

The House of Israel are the 10 Northern tribes of Israel that were eventually destroyed and taken captive by the Assyrians in 722 BC. The book of 2 Kings tells us: “In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria, and he carried the Israelites away to Assyria and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.”(2) They were dispersed and have never returned to this day. The prophet Hosea explains, “Afterward the children of Israel shall return and seek the Lord their God, and David their king, and they shall come in fear to the Lord and to his goodness in the latter days.”(3) Israel was scattered and mixed among the Gentiles throughout the world and lost their identity; however, in the end days, they will return not only to the chosen land, but they will also return to the Lord’s “goodness” and in a righteous relationship with Him. 1948 Israel has utterly rejected Jesus as the Messiah and has not at all returned to the Lord's “goodness” in continuing to practice the traditions of men found in Judaism—an anti-Christ religion through and through. The 19th-century author Rev. W. H. Poole explains,

“They [Israel] are said to be united in the prophet’s hand, and in the hand of the Lord through the cross of Christ, of which the two sticks are significant emblems. Here you see explained the crossing of the Patriarch’s hands as he blessed Ephraim and Manasseh. In this chapter Ezekiel [37] saw the awakening, identity, and restoration of those people so long separated, and he saw the two sceptres, each district, and then united, and the one king chosen by both, and he of Davide’s line, and the purification and the divine protection, and the permanent sanctuary, and the obedience most complete, and as the result of the whole, the conversion of the heathen nation to Christ.”(4)

It is important to note that it is Joseph (the Northern Kingdom of Israel) who receives the firstborn rights, not Judah. When it comes to the laws of inheritance in the Bible, the firstborn son inherits everything, from the land to all other possessions and the highest rank. In 1 Chronicles 5:1-2, the writer states, “The sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel (for he was the firstborn, but because he defiled his father’s couch, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph the son of Israel, so that he could not be enrolled as the oldest son; 2 though Judah became strong among his brothers and a chief came from him, yet the birthright belonged to Joseph).”(5) Therefore, the return of the whole House of Israel cannot be fulfilled until Joseph returns to claim his inheritance, and this event has yet to happen.

Now, who is Judah?

Judah consists of the two tribes (Judah and Benjamin) in the Southern Kingdom of Judah. These two tribes maintained their footing in Palestine until their Babylonian captivity around 539 BC for 70 years. Judah was allowed to return and was tested again with the physical manifestation of the Messiah, who they put to death. Christ foretold the final scattering of Judah until the fulfillment of prophecy. The prophet Jeremiah states, “I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a reproach, a byword, a taunt, and a curse in all the places where I shall drive them.”(6) Today, one can see the fulfillment of Jeremiahs prophecy because Judah (the Jews) are living around the world, and only a fraction are currently living in Palestine. God has always instructed the whole House of Israel that they must follow His commands in order to remain in the land; if they refused to obey, a scattering out of the land would consequently happen (Deut. 28:64). Additionally, after both major judgment events of Judah—namely, Babylon in 539 BC and then the Jewish-Roman Wars from AD 66-135—the Jews have always remembered who they are throughout all kingdoms of the earth. Judah’s identity was never lost, but their sister kingdom in the North was. Essentially, we will not see the Jews’ true regathering to the land until Joseph returns as well to become one kingdom under Christ, their King!

Knowing that Israel is a distinct nation from Judah, where did they go?

This question is very deep, and Scripture is ripe with answers. Any student of the Bible can go as early as Genesis chapters 48 and 49 to understand that Israel will be scattered and where. But first, Deuteronomy 28:64-65 more clearly explains,

“64 “And the Lord will scatter you among all peoples, from one end of the earth to the other, and there you shall serve other gods of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known. 65 And among these nations you shall find no respite, and there shall be no resting place for the sole of your foot, but the Lord will give you there a trembling heart and failing eyes and a languishing soul.”(7)

Israel was scattered among the nations. They have always wandered and never found rest. Just look at the lineage of the Celts, their whereabouts today, and how their identity is connected to Israel. This Substack will explore more works in coming posts that will provide more details about the wanderings of the Celts before they arrived in the British Isles. Still, it is essential to note here that there is considerable historical evidence indicating their Hebrew origins. First, one must note that after the fall of Assyria at the hand of the Babylonians, the Assyrian people (and the captured Israelites) were scattered in various directions. However, geology dictated one major route as the easiest and most feasible option for their escape from the Babylonians in 612 BC. That particular route was through the Caucasus Mountains into the European Continent. Going forward in time, we see that one of the key people groups to emerge, the Celts, later evolved into the British nation and expanded across the world through colonialism.

The current identity of Israel is such a deep topic, and there were even more Israelite scatterings even before their Assyrian captivity via the Phoenicians whom they became mixed. Later works will highlight the Phoenician and Israelite connection and their expeditions of world trade together as early as King David. The Israelites, and more so Joseph, became the Celts who have been sprinkled worldwide, and that is what this work and channel will mainly focus on. Overcome Babylon will never focus on the race or color of Israel, but on who Joseph is and the prophecy of their future return to Palestine with their brother Judah.

In conclusion, the deceptive teaching that the 1948 State of Israel fulfilled the prophecy of the regathering of all Israel is simply not true. The 10 Northern Tribes called Israel are still at large and have yet to understand their identity. The whole point of Overcome Babylon is to teach the unidentified Israel of who they truly are and the end-times prophecies that mainly involve them. In fact, end-times prophecy is all about them! For instance, when Jesus held His earthly ministry, He came only for the lost sheep of the House of Israel. The Book of Matthew 15:24 records, “He answered, ‘I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.’”(8) Remember that the House of Israel is a separate and distinct people group from the Jews. They are the Northern Kingdom that consists only of the 10 lost tribes, while the Jews or Judah are the Southern Kingdom that consists of Judah and Benjamin. What Jesus says in Matthew 15:24 is key to understanding why Jesus came to earth, died, and rose again. Jesus’ whole purpose was to give salvation back to the House of Israel, which was once divorced from God, but now, through the Risen Savior, they have redemption to be remarried to Him. Of course, Israel has to believe and surrender their will to the Messiah, but they have an identity in Him now. As Peter stated in his Epistle, “Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy”.(9) Peter is quoting Hosea 2:23 when God calls Israel “Not My People”. Hosea is the beautiful love story of God divorcing the House of Israel, but then eventually giving her Salvation through the Messiah. All of the end-times prophecies culminate in one fact:

The House of Israel will be given Salvation through Jesus’ atoning blood and be regathered back to the land, becoming one nation again with Judah, and with Christ as their physical king upon His return.

Bibliography:

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 1 Ki 11:30–35.
Ibid., 2 Ki 17:6.
Ibid., Ho 3:5.
W. H. Poole, Anglo-Israel: Or The British Nation the Lost Tribes of Israel. (Toronto: Canada: Bengough Bro’s, 1879), 7.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 1 Ch 5:1–2.
Ibid., Je 24:9.
Ibid., De 28:64-65.
Ibid., Mt 15:24.
Ibid., 1 Pe 2:10.